Adapters of the type with which the present invention is concerned are frequently used in offices. In many modern offices there are wall panels or separators dividing offices or work spaces. In these environments, there is a need to route telephone lines and data lines (collectively referred to as "Local Area Networks" or simply, LANs) to and from the locations defined by the office wall panels, and it is desirable to minimize or eliminate cable lying on the floor. Therefore, modern office systems frequently include provisions for routing such cables or wires within the wall panels themselves, and it is common to route Local Area Networks in a wire channel that runs along the bottom interior of an office wall panel. Thus, adapters of the type with which the present invention is concerned are normally mounted in metal (or plastic) channels located at the lower portions of office wall panels.
There are many different manufacturers of office wall panels and even the same manufacturer may have different arrangements for wire channels at the bottom of its office wall panels. The present invention is directed to an adapter for office wall panels which provides a universal mounting for many different types of wire channels in office wall panels.
In the past, mountings for adapters have been uniquely designed for each type or style of wire channel. One such adapter includes a backing plate for the adapter which has extensions or feet which fit into slots formed in the wall of the wire channel. The adapter also has a detent located at the upper portion for snapping into a corresponding recess on the wall panel. Thus, although it is convenient to assemble such an adapter to a wire channel, the arrangement of lower slots and upper recess are unique to a particular model or manufacturer of wall panel, and such an arrangement would require different adapters for each manufacturer or model of wall panel.